Florida Senate candidates agree on one thing: Cuba
By Tom Baxter
Southern Political Report
December 22, 2009 — The four leading candidates for the open US Senate seat in Florida -- Gov. Charlie Crist, former state House Speaker Marco Rubio, US Rep. Kendrick Meek and former Miami Mayor Maurice Ferre -- met for the first time in Coral Gables Monday for the U.S.-Cuba Democracy Political Action Committee's annual luncheon. And while they may not agree on much, all four took a tough stance on normalization of relations with Cuba. ``Freedom in not a Democratic or Republican issue, it is a fundamental concept that unites us all in this nation,'' Crist said. Crist and Rubio are Republicans, and Meek and Ferre are Democrats. Rubio is the only Cuban American in the field, but Crist called attention to his family's immigrant (Greek Cypriot) roots, Ferre has close ties to the Cuban American community in Miami, and Meek's mother, former US Rep. Carrie Meek, was recognized at the luncheon for her efforts on behalf of the community. -- Former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee has endorsed Lt. Gov. Andre Bauer in the South Carolina governor's race. The 2008 Republican presidential candidate said in a fundraising letter that Bauer "has ruled against every single proposed tax increase" since becoming lieutenant governor. Huckabee also recently endorsed Rex Rice, who's running for the congressional seat currently held by one of Bauer's rivals in the governor's race, Gresham Barrett. -- An influential member of the Texas state House, Republican Brian McCall of Plano, has announced he won't seek re-election. McCall waged an unsuccessful effort to topple former House Speaker Tom Craddick three years ago, but this year he joined a bipartisan group which elected Joe Straus to the post after Craddick conceded. Follow Tom Baxter on Twitter. |
